Updated 5:36 pm, Tuesday, May 19, 2015

STAMFORD -- Police are investigating a Board of Education member's recent claim that she was threatened with physical harm by a fellow board member after a special session.

The incident allegedly took place following a May 12 exchange between board Vice President Lorraine Olson and board Secretary Dolores Burgess. That exchange followed another dispute between the two during a Feb. 3 public meeting.

A videotape of the earlier meeting shows Olson accusing Burgess of emailing false statements about her and interviewing Stamford High School staff against legal advice.

At the May meeting, Olson claims emotions became more heated and that Burgess threatened to punch her. Lt. Diedrich Hohn said. Olson came to police headquarters on Friday and filed a complaint to that effect.

Hohn said investigators are checking a videotape of the public session of the May 12 meeting and talking to witnesses in order to determine what occurred. Criminal charges such as threatening or breach of peace could be in the offing if police can validate Olson's story.

Burgess denied making any kind of a threat against Olson.

"I have no idea what she is talking about," Burgess said Monday. "You look at the videotape, and you'll see that she started in on me. She said I owed her an apology and I told her she was not going to get one."

Olson did not return a call requesting comment.

The board has been under particular stress since last summer, when English teacher Danielle Watkins was arrested for having a school-year-long sexual relationship with a male student and providing him and another student with marijuana. Then-Principal Donna Valentine and her assistant principal at the time, Roth Nordin, were later arrested and charged with failing to report the abuse. Watkins is serving five years in prison.

Valentine, Nordin and Assistant Principal Angela Thomas Graves have since been recommended for dismissal by Superintendent Winifred Hamilton following last month's release of a 138-page investigative report that documented how the school district mishandled the sex scandal.

In addition, district Human Resources Director Stephen Falcone has been suspended for four non-consecutive weeks without pay, and Assistant Superintendent Michael Fernandes has resigned in the wake of the independent report by the law firm Pullman & Comley.